In conventional systems for material handling vehicles such as forklifts, lead acid batteries have been used as an energy source. These batteries tend to be very heavy, such that it was generally not necessary to add weight to the relevant systems in order for the vehicles to be properly balanced for different operations. However, lead acid batteries also tend to have significantly lower energy and power density than more advanced batteries, such as lithium-based batteries. Accordingly, providing a lead-acid battery with sufficient storage capacity for a particular vehicle or vehicle operation can require a substantial amount of space, and thereby preclude inclusion of certain other features.
Also in conventional systems, protection for batteries against contact, vibration, and other similar effects, can be limited. Further, relatively few features, if any, are typically included to help control battery temperature (e.g., in very hot or very cold environments). Although some batteries can operate at temperature extremes, other batteries can suffer from significant performance loss. Performance of some types of batteries, for example, can be significantly limited by temperature. For example, cold temperatures can reduce the available power from these batteries, and charging the batteries at low temperatures can damage the battery cells. Further, use at high temperatures can raise the temperature of the battery cells, and thereby limit the utility of opportunity charging, which can otherwise represent a significant advantage, particularly in material-handling operations.
Further, conventional systems can offer relatively little protection for battery electrical components from water and other the environmental factors. As such, batteries in conventional systems can be exposed to environmental water and other factors.